Alexander the Great and the Red Dragon

«Hannibal»-producer Dino De Laurentiis, decorated in March with the Irving G. Thalberg Award for his life time's work, is not standing still. De Laurentiis is already planning his next big – in the true sense of the word – projects: the «Alexander the Great»-trilogy by the Italian author Valerio Manfredi and a sequel to «Hannibal».

The three parts of the «Alexander»-trilogy have been published in 42 countries since they were first released in 1998. They have also been translated into 12 languages and reached a total circulation of 2,5 million copies. The 30 main characters in the books experience ten years of war, cover a distance of 24'000 km and visit over 70 cities. An epic of truly gigantic proportions. «When I read the trilogy five months ago, I knew straight away that I had to make a film version of it », remarked De Laurentiis in an interview. Before he brings the story of Alexander the Great to our screens, he will be producing together with his wife Martha «Red Dragon», the sequel to «Hannibal». The film is based on Thomas Harris' novel of the same name dating back to 1981 in which the character of Hannibal Lecter first makes an appearance. «Red Dragon» was first filmed in 1986 under the heading of «Manhunter» by Michael Mann. The character of Hannibal Lecter first became famous through Anthony Hopkins performance in Jonathan Demme's «The Silence of the Lambs». For his longstanding friend Dino De Laurentiis, Hopkins is prepared to play for a third – and presumably last – time the role of the cannibal Hannibal Lecter.